Waterford High staging 'Laramie Project'

Waterford — Tickets are on sale for WATERFORDrama’s first production of the season, “The Laramie Project” — the group’s second go-round at highlighting the residents of a Wyoming town as they coped with the violent death of one of their own.

Performances will take place at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 17-19 in the high school auditorium.

In October 1998, Matthew Shepard, a gay University of Wyoming student. was beaten, tied to a fence on the outskirts of town and left to die on a bitterly cold night.

In the play, students portray members of the Tectonic Theater Project, a group of 10 playwrights who traveled from New York City to Laramie to conduct interviews. Over 18 months, they made six trips to the town and conducted more than 200 interviews. Students also portray the Laramie residents who shared their thoughts about Shepard’s murder.

Reserved seating tickets for “The Laramie Project” may be purchased from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday in the Waterford High School lobby. Tickets are $12 for adults and $7 for students if purchased in advance and may be reserved by calling (860) 437-6956, ext. 728.

General admission for the second show, “The Laramie Project: Ten Years Later,” at 6:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 20, will be free with a ticket stub from first show’s Thursday, Friday or Saturday night performances.